All Politicians Should be as Inspiring as This Man..

Born of Kenyan-American descent, a first-term Democratic Senator from the traditional Republican bastion of red-state Illinois, Barack Obama symbolises the bridge across many of the divides we see in our world today… Race, nationalities, religion, education, socio-economic..

He might not represent all, but these are examples of bases of segregation which have been seeded and are sprouting in many parts of the world today. More importantly, such partitioning are making many lose the core driving force of the human spirit — HOPE.

We are told to remember the idea, not the man. Because a man can fail. He can be caught, he can be killed and forgotten. But four hundred years later an idea can still change the world. — V from Vendetta, movie

Come 2008, whoever sits in the White House, let not the message of Hope be lost.

Tonight is a particular honor for me because, let’s face it, my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely. My father was a foreign student, born and raised in a small village in Kenya. He grew up herding goats, went to school in a tin-roof shack. His father — my grandfather — was a cook, a domestic servant to the British.

They would give me an African name, Barack, or ”blessed,” believing that in a tolerant America your name is no barrier to success. They imagined — They imagined me going to the best schools in the land, even though they weren’t rich, because in a generous America you don’t have to be rich to achieve your potential.

That is the true genius of America, a faith — a faith in simple dreams, an insistence on small miracles; that we can tuck in our children at night and know that they are fed and clothed and safe from harm; that we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door; that we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe; that we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be counted — at least most of the time.

The people I meet — in small towns and big cities, in diners and office parks — they don’t expect government to solve all their problems. They know they have to work hard to get ahead, and they want to… People don’t expect — People don’t expect government to solve all their problems. But they sense, deep in their bones, that with just a slight change in priorities, we can make sure that every child in America has a decent shot at life, and that the doors of opportunity remain open to all.

Do we participate in a politics of cynicism or do we participate in a politics of hope?

Hope — Hope in the face of difficulty. Hope in the face of uncertainty. The audacity of hope!

In the end, that is God’s greatest gift to us, the bedrock of this nation. A belief in things not seen. A belief that there are better days ahead.

Videos of Obama’s DNC speech available here and here, courtesy of Youtube.